MORE SUNDAY WORLD, 9-13: GIANT SUN GETS INSURER; CHINA WIND SEEKING CERTIFICATION; INDIA'S 60 SOLAR CITIES IN 2020; NORWAY FLOATS OFFSHORE WIND

GIANT SUN GETS INSURER
Munich Re may insure Desertec solar energy project
George Frey, September 7, 2009 (AP via Forbes)

"German reinsurer Munich Re AG said its main role in the proposed Desertec solar energy project is currently as a catalyst and advisor, but could become a bigger investor and possible insurer…

"Desertec, still on the drawing board, aims to produce solar-generated electricity for much of Europe, Africa and the Middle East in coming years through a vast network of generating facilities and transmission grids across North Africa and the Middle East…"

While new nuclear and "clean" coal plants can't get insurers without government liability protections, staid and conservative Munich Re is willing to back this audacious and ambitious plan. What does that say? (click to enlarge)

"The three-year project phase will focus on creating the regulatory framework and developing a detailed rollout plan to allow stakeholders, including governments, to evaluate their possible involvement and investment. The next step in Desertec will be to legally incorporate [on October 31]...

"Over the summer, a consortium of 12 European companies announced plans to build the project in North Africa and the Middle East which they said could satisfy 15 percent of Europe's energy needs by 2050…The Desertec consortium also includes Deutsche Bank AG…German industrial conglomerate Siemens AG…and the German power companies RWE AG and E.ON…"

More details about the plan. (click to enlarge)

"The project would be based largely on solar power plants, which use mirrors to focus the sun's energy to heat liquid and power turbines. Such plants are already running in the U.S., Spain and elsewhere…[It is] still far from being realized though, given the enormous cost and funding necessary to build the project alone - while generation and transmission will also come at no small cost…[and there are other risks] like potential political instability or even terrorism threats in the region, while some environmentalists say Europe would be better served sticking to smaller-scale solar facilities at home.

"The German Aerospace Center estimates the new electricity transport network alone will cost some euro45 billion ($63 billion), while the group forecast the entire project could approach some euro400 billion…The Desertec consortium said it had already started discussing the project with governments in Europe and Africa, though wasn't specific as to which ones. Morocco, for example, has already expressed interest…[Munich Re] said it was still too early to say how equity investors might join the project, if it gets built…"


CHINA WIND SEEKING CERTIFICATION
GL signed Contract with Sinovel; Agreement comprises measurements for three turbines
8 September 2009 (Germanischer Lloyd)

"Germanischer Lloyd (GL) has signed a contract on wind turbine measurements with Chinese SINOVEL Wind Co., Ltd. Services include load-, power performance- and power quality as well as acoustic noise measurements. The agreement comprises measurements for three Sinovel turbines: SL1500/82, SL3000/100 and SL3000/90 (on- and offshore). Last-named is, for example, erected in the Shanghai East Sea Bridge's 100MW Offshore Wind Farm - China's first national offshore wind power demonstrating project.

"The services will be provided in joint cooperation by WINDTEST Kaiser-Wilhelm-Koog GmbH - a 100% subsidiary of GL - and the GL Renewables Asia teams in Shanghai/China and Mumbai/India. The combination of WINDTEST's experience in turbine measurement and GL Renewables Asia's local competencies will enrich the project during its realization."

Sinovel successfully installed the first 3-megawatt turbine in the 100-megawatt Shanghai East Sea Bridge Wind Farm, China's pioneer offshore installation, last spring. It is an accomplishment the U.S. has not achieved. (click to enlarge)

"The contract will commence in September 2009 and is scheduled to be completed by May 2010. GL has started immediately after contract signing with the required preparations to support Sinovel's ambitious targets. To enter international markets Sinovel wants to prove its companies technology as soon as possible."

GL certification is one of the most distinguished approvals in industry. Winning it will put Sinovel in a powerful competitive position. (click to enlarge)

"For Germanischer Lloyd, this mandate is another step on the Chinese market. Sinovel is one of the leading Chinese wind turbine manufacturers with a reported local market share of above 22%. In recent years, GL and Sinovel already worked together in the fields of certification of wind turbines...

"On March 20th, 2009, the first 3MW offshore wind turbine developed by Sinovel has been installed successfully at its first attempt on Shanghai East Sea Bridge wind farm. At present, Sinovel is independently developing 3MW-level large scale wind turbine technology...Sinovel has achieved spanning development within 3 years and in 2008 it has become the largest wind turbine manufacture in China, ranking 1st in China and 7th of the wind industry in the world."


INDIA COULD HAVE 60 SOLAR CITIES IN 2020
60 solar powered Indian cities by 2020: US energy official
8 September 2009 (Times of India)

"Sixty Indian cities will be solar powered by 2020 if India is able to generate 20,000 MW of solar energy by then, said Mark Ginberg, [senior executive advisor to the assistant secretary of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy] with the US Department of Energy…

"The US Department of Energy and the All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG) launched a joint training programme on 'Energy efficient and green cities' in Goa, which will train Indian experts, universities, local self governments and civic bodies on getting cities to move to solar powered energy…"

click for the complete presentation

"According to an initial list of [20] partnered Indo-US cities, Ahmedabad has been tied up with Atlanta and Columbus; Bangalore with San Francisco; Chennai with Denver, Delhi with Chicago, Mumbai with Los Angeles, Surat with Philadelphia and Vadodara (Baroda) with Edison, New Jersey, which has a large Gujarati community…"

click for the complete presentation

"…[Indian] schools [will] study energy-smart schools in the US and implement the [programs]…Mumbai port could…[learn from] how LA port has adopted energy smart measures…[but] the US government [will not] be funding such projects in India…[although] the US government has realised the importance of renewable energy in the future and has pumped billions of dollars into such programmes in America…

"…Union minister of state for power Bharatsinh Solanki…said that [India] could make use of its open fields and rooftops of houses to harness solar energy and water harvesting…[G]overnor S S Sidhu said that of the 10 largest cities in the world, eight will be in developing countries…[M]ayors and civic officials from 30 Indian cities and abroad [participated]…"


NORWAY FLOATS OFFSHORE WIND
World's first floating wind turbine on stream
Rolliev Solholm, September 9, 2009 (The Norway Post)

"Hywind, the world's first full-scale floating wind turbine is on stream…StatoilHydro's pilot facility is anchored 10 kilometres off Karmoey, in south-western Norway…

"The Hywind pilot is to be tested over a two-year period. It combines technology from both the wind power and oil and gas sectors, and draws on expertise gained from StatoilHydro’s long offshore experience…"

click to enlarge

"The Hywind concept combines known technologies in a completely new setting and opens up the possibility for capturing wind energy in deep-water environments."

click to enlarge

"The floating structure consists of a steel cylinder filled with a ballast of water and rocks. It extends 100 metres beneath the sea’s surface and is attached to the seabed by a three-point mooring spread.

"The turbine itself was manufactured by Siemens. Technip built the floater and was responsible for the installation work offshore. Nexans Norway laid the submarine power line. This comes ashore near Skudeneshavn at the southern end of Karmoey, where local grid operator Haugaland Kraft operates a receiving station."